Windisch and Dal Corso keep Italy at the top of the podium in Lecce

Jakob Windisch and Gianluca Dal Corso continued the Italian tradition of winning gold medals at Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour Futures held in their country with their victory at this week’s event in Lecce. Three other European teams stepped on the podium, with the continent taking home four of the six medals in play at the Spiaggia Molo di Adriano over the last four days.

Windisch, 23, and Dal Corso, 21, had to work really hard for their first Beach Pro Tour gold medals. The two, who had taken bronze last week in Giardini Naxos, were down a set against Ukrainians Sergiy Popov and Eduard Reznik in the final of the tournament, but found their rhythm during the match to make a comeback and win 2-1 (13-21, 21-18, 15-12). The Italians ended the week undefeated, with five wins in as many matches.

The tournament in Lecce was the third Beach Pro Tour Futures held in Italy and each of them had a home team standing at the top of the podium with Fabrizio Manni and Francesco Vanni triumphing in Cervia in May and Claudia Scampoli and Margherita Bianchin claiming gold in Giardini Naxos last week.

The men’s tournament had an all-European podium, repeating what had happened last week in Giardini Naxos, after Denmark’s Jacob Brinck and Kristoffer Abell secured the bronze medals with their two-set (21-17, 21-19) victory against Argentineans Bautista Amieva and Leo Aveiro to finish third.

In the women’s tournament, three-time Olympian and 2011 EuroBeachVolley winner Marta Menegatti and 19-year-old partner Valentina Gottardi came very close to delighting their Italian home fans with another gold medal, but had to settle for silver after they fell to Vanuatu’s Miller Pata and Sherysyn Toko in the three-set (15-21, 21-19, 15-9) final in Lecce.

Argentineans Cecilia Peralta and Maia Najul completed the podium following their straight-set (21-11, 23-21) victory over Australians Alisha Stevens and Georgia Johnson while the Netherlands’ Brecht Piersma/Desy Poiesz and Italy’s Valentina Cali/Margherita Tega and Anna Pelloia/Reka Orsi Toth all tied for fifth place.

The third and last of three consecutive Beach Pro Tour Futures events in Italy will take place next week, between Thursday and Sunday, when Ciro Marina will be the host city.